Expat businesses in danger of immediate closure due to Spanish lockdown

Expat businesses and SMEs in Spain’s Costa del Sol region are now predicted to fail at a rate of three per day.

The Spanish government is being urged to assist expat-owned SMEs and self employed traders affected by the coronavirus pandemic. Auditors and accountants are predicting business failures at a rate of three per day should assistance not be provided. All businesses along the famous Costa del Sol have now been closed for two weeks in an attempt to stop the spread of the deadly virus, with both expat and Spanish owners in the popular region now praying the lockdown will end soon or, at least, not last longer than a few more weeks.

Many SME expat owners used monies from the sale of their UK homes to start up bar or restaurant businesses and will have nothing to fall back on should they be forced into permanent closure by a total lack of cash flow. To date, the Spanish government have offered no assistance to expat businesses, with the delaying of due date income tax payments totally irrelevant as no profits means no tax.

In addition, British business owners along the coastline are fearing Spanish banks may crack down on expats behind on their loan repayments, with many expecting bad news on that front. The timing of the pandemic is unfortunate, as most SMEs use cash reserves to cover expenses in winter before gearing up for the summer’s tourism trade. The virus is expected to be at its peak just as the summer season starts, and no-one knows how long the present lockdown will last, nor how the closure will affect advance summer season bookings.